Eli Tomac ready for title fight

By Rob Geiger

SEATTLE — It’s been six weeks since GEICO Honda’s 250SX West rider combo of Eli Tomac and Zach Osborne has been on the big stage of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series, but it’s not like the pair have been taking it easy.

Both riders have followed their own paths to Saturday’s event at CenturyLink Field in order keep their competitive edge heading into the start of the final three races of the season.

Tomac, who is in the thick of his defense of the 250SX West title, raced a handful of times on a 450 before resuming his training routine aboard the 250 he has taken to four victory celebrations this year.

“It feels like I haven’t raced in forever,” Tomac said. “This last part of the season is like a fresh start to a mini-season for me. I’ve been feeling really good the whole time I’ve been off. I’m really looking forward to this weekend.”

Tomac started the season off with three straight wins and will be looking to close the season in a similar fashion as he tries to track down 250SX West points leader Ken Roczen, who owns a 17-point advantage over second-place Tomac.

“The 450 kept me on the track racing as long as I could,” Tomac said. “It really help my confidence to ride against the best guys in the world. It helped me push harder and realize I have to make it happen, get good starts and not make any mistakes while I’m out there. I’m ready to get after it.”

Practice for Saturday’s Monster Energy AMA Supercross event at CenturyLink Field gets under way at 1:30 p.m., with opening ceremonies at 7. SPEED TV will air the 250SX race at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday.